The IBM DS8000 storage controller is a dual processor complex controller. The dual processor complex controller includes two POWER5 based servers. A POWER5 server contains processors and memory needed to run the applications that manage the DS8000 functions. The AIX operating system (OS) is an open standards-based, UNIX operating system that allows a user to run the desired applications on IBM UNIX OS-based servers. The boot devices and the Service Processor (SP) are the POWER5 hardware of special interest to this invention.
Each POWER5 server in the DS8000 contains two boot devices. One boot device maybe be designated the primary boot device, and the other a mirror boot device. The boot devices contain the boot files to load the AIX kernel, the AIX Operating System and the DS8000 application program that performs the function necessary to manage the storage controller. In addition, the boot devices contain configuration files that are used to manage the hardware resources of the storage controller.
The Service Processor (SP) is a POWERPC controller embedded in a POWER5 server. The SP contains application programs and device drivers that are required for the functionality of the service processor hardware. The SP application programs are used to manage and monitor the POWER5 server hardware resources and devices. The SP provides functions to manage the automatic power re-start of a POWER5 server, to manage the selection of the boot devices, and the capability to modify the boot list. The auto restart (reboot) option, when enabled, may reboot the system automatically following an unrecoverable hardware or software related failure.
The SP provides several distinct surveillance functions. One SP surveillance function monitors the functionality of the firmware during the boot process, while another surveillance function monitors the health of the Operating System. The surveillance functions allow the SP to take appropriate action when the monitor function detects a failure. The SP can deallocate or deconfigure a hardware resource. The hardware resources deallocated or deconfigured are bypassed during the boot process.
In general, the configuration and management of each POWER5 server and the DS8000 hardware resources takes place through a Storage Hardware Management (S-HMC) console. The S-HMC is a stand alone workstation that provides both a Graphical User Interface (GUI) and a Command Line Interface (CLI). In reality, the S-HMC interfaces with the SP to provide a user the capability to perform configuration, resource management, and maintenance activities on a POWER5 server and additional hardware resources of the DS8000 storage controller. The S-HMC console provides among several functions the capability to remotely control the power management of each POWER5 server, such as the ability to manage the power of a POWER5 server.
The S-HMC, the POWER5 server and the Service Processor are interconnected through two 16-port Ethernet switches. Each POWER5 server, Service Processor, and the S-HMC connects to each switch. This configuration provides for a fully redundant management network.
During a reboot or Initial program Load (IPL) of a POWER5 server, the S-HMC displays progress codes. The progress codes are numeric characters which are displayed sequentially. The progress codes indicate the state of the reboot or IPL progress. If the reboot or IPL fails or is stalled, the displayed progress code indicates at which point the fail occurred. An indication that a reboot or IPL has failed is the fixed display of the same progress code.
Depending on the boot status failure, the required action necessary for repair may lead to a physical removal of the failed boot device, a replacement of the failed boot device, a modification of the boot list, or a rebuild of the boot devices. For example, when the boot is stuck with status 0557 (a failure to read the boot sector), the plan of action requires the pull of the failed boot device. The mirror boot device must then be used to retry the boot.
All the recovery actions of a failed reboot or a failed IPL require manual intervention from the system administrator or an IBM representative. The boot recovery action is prone to further problems due to user mistakes during the repair action. With manual intervention, it takes time to perform the repair actions. In addition, while the failure to boot or IPL persists, the DS8000 is in single logical partitioning (LPAR) mode. This increases the likelihood of exposure to a situation where the storage controller is not available if for some reason a failure occurs in the running server. This also affects overall system performance because the DS8000 performance has been fine tuned with the availability of both Power 5 servers in mind. Just as important, this could also increase warranty costs, as it can take several hours to provide on-site support, including diagnosis of the problem. This in turn could bring several more hours as the hardware used as boot devices (HDD) are not normal pieces of hardware carried by a customer engineer.